The evolution of electronic communication technology has helped to drive its rapid acceptance and utilization in both professional and personal settings. People have come to rely upon electronic communication not only for personal interaction, but may also employ their communication-enabled devices to perform various transactions. For example, users may employ a variety of device (e.g., smart phones, tablet/laptop/desktop computers, etc.) when conducting purchase transaction, banking transactions, business-related transactions, etc. As a result, more and more personal, financial, business-related information is being accumulated, turning these electronic devices into sensitive information silos. For example, an electronic device may comprise the user's name, address, social security number, driver's license number, financial account numbers, account balance information, business contact information, business account numbers, business security codes and even in some instances extremely confidential information like governmental security and access codes.
Existing measures for protecting a device and its contents may focus on localized threat neutralization measures. For example, virus protection, a hardware/software-based firewalls, etc. may be implemented to guard against viruses, malware, etc. User identity verification systems (e.g., password entry, biometric identification, etc.) may also help to thwart access attempts by unauthorized users that get control of a device. However, these known measures are becoming outmoded as those seeking unauthorized access hone their skills. For example, new software-based attacks are designed specially to either avoid or overcome the protection provided by existing protection software. These enhanced attacks may be bolstered by non-software-based measures such as surveillance, trickery, deception, etc. that may occur in person, via electronic communication (e.g., with a device owner, a service provider, etc.), etc. As a result, even though a user is vigilant, it may still be possible for the operation of their device to become comprised along with their information.
Although the following Detailed Description will proceed with reference being made to illustrative embodiments, many alternatives, modifications and variations thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art.